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October 03, 2025
 

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Yoshitami Kameoka, elected to the Lower House for the first time in 2005, served in posts including state minister for post-disaster reconstruction.
JAPAN / Politics
Ex-lawmaker Kameoka pleads not guilty over cash distribution
Kameoka, elected to the Lower House for the first time in 2005, served in posts including state minister for post-disaster reconstruction.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Host of tough compromises on policy issues await next LDP president
Just how much the ruling party needs to compromise will depend on which opposition party it intends to work closer with for any given issue, and the level of that cooperation.
JAPAN / Politics
What’s driving the far-right voters who shook Japanese politics
Sanseito’s slogan is "Japanese First,” and it campaigned on a mix of tax cutting, vaccine skepticism and restrictions on immigration and foreign investment.
An extraordinary session of the parliament to elect the next prime minister is expected to be convened on Oct. 15.
JAPAN / Politics
Oct 2, 2025
Parliament expected to elect new prime minister on Oct. 15
After being elected, the new prime minister will form the Cabinet later in the day.
Haruo Tsukamoto, a rank-and-file member of the Liberal Democratic Party and a rice farmer in Ibaraki Prefecture, questions if the party still stands for people like him.
JAPAN / Politics
Oct 2, 2025
The party that ruled Japan for decades is in danger of crumbling
By Yoshiaki Nohara
Long-time supporters are questioning if the Liberal Democratic Party still stands for them even as populist and far-right challengers make inroads.
Komeito head Tetsuo Saito says his party cannot form a coalition government with any party that doesn’t align itself with its moderate conservative policies.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Oct 2, 2025
LDP presidential election could be turning point for Komeito
By Eric Johnston
After Saturday’s vote, the junior coalition partner will have to adjust to a new LDP, one whose values might differ from its own.
Fumitake Fujita, co-leader of Nippon Ishin no Kai, speaks during a news conference at the Diet on Wednesday.
JAPAN / Politics
Oct 2, 2025
Nippon Ishin to submit anti-espionage bill to extra Diet session
The bill will call for establishing a foreign intelligence agency based on existing government bodies.
Agriculture Minister Shinjiro Koizumi (right) reacts as former economic security minister Sanae Takaichi speaks during the Liberal Democratic Party Presidential Election Candidate Debate at the Japan National Press Club in Tokyo, on Sept. 24. Koizumi and Takaichi remain head-to-head in the race, media polls show.
JAPAN / Politics
Oct 1, 2025
Koizumi and Takaichi continue to lead in LDP presidential race, polls show
By Gabriele Ninivaggi
With Koizumi leading in one poll, and Takaichi leading in another, the winner of the election on Saturday is anyone’s guess.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba and South Korean President Lee Jae Myung before their meeting in Busan, South Korea, on Tuesday
JAPAN / Politics
Oct 1, 2025
Japan and South Korea tout stable ties, but concerns rise over Ishiba’s replacement
By Jesse Johnson
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba and South Korean President Lee Jae Myung looked to regularize “shuttle diplomacy,” but much may hinge on Japan’s next leader.
Former lawmaker Akira Ishii has been indicted without arrest for alleged fraud involving state-paid salaries of a secretary.
JAPAN / Politics
Oct 1, 2025
Akira Ishii, former lawmaker, indicted without arrest over alleged fraud
Ishii is alleged to have defrauded the state of some ¥8 million by registering a male relative as a public secretary.
Former economic security minister Sanae Takaichi poses with supporters at Hie Shrine in Tokyo on Sept. 22.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Oct 1, 2025
Can Takaichi win back conservative voters? Maybe not.
By Himari Semans
The conservative champion has been trying to soften her image to reach more moderate voters — the party’s largest support base.
Sanseito party leader Sohei Kamiya speaks during an interview in Tokyo on Sept. 25.
JAPAN / Politics
Oct 1, 2025
Japan's far-right party courts Trump allies and vows not to get 'wacky'
By John Geddie, Tim Kelly and Nathan Layne
Sanseito has set up an international arm to court Trump's allies, betting that conservative recognition will help it shake up staid Japanese politics.
Nippon Ishin leader Hirofumi Yoshimura speaks to reporters at party headquarters in Osaka on Tuesday.
JAPAN / Politics
Sep 30, 2025
Nippon Ishin draws up outline for secondary capital plan
The team defined the secondary capital as an economic center comparable to the Tokyo area that can function as the capital in the event that Tokyo becomes unable to do so.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba (left) shakes hands with South Korean President Lee Jae Myung before their meeting in Busan on Tuesday.
JAPAN / Politics
Sep 30, 2025
South Korea and Japan look to cement ties before Ishiba’s exit
By Soo-hyang Choi
The two countries agreed to continue working-level discussions on low birth rates, regional growth and measures to prevent suicide, among other issues.
Hirofumi Ryu (center) of the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan, Takashi Endo (left) of Nippon Ishin no Kai and Motohisa Furukawa of the Democratic Party for the People meet in parliament on Tuesday.
JAPAN / Politics
Sep 30, 2025
Opposition parties unlikely to cooperate in vote to select prime minister
The winner of the LDP election is now expected to be elected prime minister, although the LDP-Komeito coalition lacks majorities in both chambers of parliament.
In his second bid for the presidency, farm minister Shinjiro Koizumi has toned down his rhetoric, avoiding controversial proposals for social and labor reform and pledging instead to carry on the work of previous administrations.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Sep 30, 2025
Why Koizumi is toning down his calls for reform
By Gabriele Ninivaggi
The political scion's unsuccessful bid for the Liberal Democratic Party presidency last year may be influencing his shift in strategy this time.
Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi speaks during a news conference Monday at the Prime Minister's Office.
JAPAN / Politics
Sep 30, 2025
Japan resumes sanctions against Iran in line with U.N. resolution
Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi stated that Japan's stance of calling for a solution through dialogue remains unchanged.
Komeito Secretary-General Makoto Nishida (left), LDP political reform chief Kisaburo Tokai (center) and CDP political reform chief Hiroshi Ogushi attend a meeting on political reform at the Diet on Sept. 25.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Sep 30, 2025
Momentum for political reform wanes in Japan
Responses to the key unresolved issue of political donations from corporations and other organizations will test all political parties' commitment to reform.
Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi touts his own "experience and achievement" during the Liberal Democratic Party's presidential election candidate debate at Nihon Kisha Club in Tokyo on September 24.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Sep 29, 2025
Japan’s ‘Mr. 119’ might be facing his biggest challenge yet
By Eric Johnston
Time is running out for Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi to convince colleagues in the Liberal Democratic Party that he is best suited to lead them.
The Liberal Democratic Party presidential election candidates in Nagoya on Friday
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Sep 28, 2025
On defense and foreign policy, LDP candidates largely align — except where they don’t
By Jesse Johnson
From nuanced differences in how to bolster Japan’s defenses to the importance of relations with the U.S., each candidate’s views could result in significantly different policies.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba (L) and South Korean President Lee Jae Myung
JAPAN / Politics
Sep 28, 2025
Ishiba and Lee to discuss future of Tokyo-Seoul 'shuttle diplomacy'
The Japanese Prime Minister wants to ensure that Japan and South Korea maintain stable relations even after he steps down.
The internal affairs ministry in Tokyo's Chiyoda Ward. The ministry has barred four municipalities from taking part in Japan's <i>furusato nōzei</i> hometown donation program for two years due to their excessive spending on the program.
JAPAN / Politics
Sep 26, 2025
Four municipalities to be banned from hometown tax program after overspending
The municipalities affected are Soja in Okayama Prefecture, Unzen in Nagasaki Prefecture, Miyaki in Saga Prefecture and Yamato in Kumamoto Prefecture.
Former Liberal Democratic Party policy chief Hakubun Shimomura had sought to resume kickbacks from party fundraising revenues, according to the testimony of a former faction accountant to the Tokyo District Court on Friday.
JAPAN / Politics
Sep 26, 2025
Shimomura asked for resumption of kickbacks, LDP ex-accountant testifies
The former LDP policy chief suggested that former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe had agreed to resume the practice, former Abe faction accountant Junichiro Matsumoto said.

A secret no more: Russia and North Korea's battle against Ukraine is celebrated in Moscow exhibit
A woman visits an exhibition of North Korean art at a museum in Moscow on Monday.
Prices to rise for 3,024 food products in Japan in October
A wide range of products will see higher prices due to rising material and labor costs.
Koizumi and Takaichi continue to lead in LDP presidential race, polls show
Agriculture Minister Shinjiro Koizumi (right) reacts as former economic security minister Sanae Takaichi speaks during the Liberal Democratic Party Presidential Election Candidate Debate at the Japan National Press Club in Tokyo, on Sept. 24. Koizumi and Takaichi remain head-to-head in the race, media polls show.
The party that ruled Japan for decades is in danger of crumbling
Haruo Tsukamoto, a rank-and-file member of the Liberal Democratic Party and a rice farmer in Ibaraki Prefecture, questions if the party still stands for people like him.
8,432 foreign children in Japan seen not attending school
The total number of foreign children registered in Japan as residents eligible for education at elementary or junior high schools stood at 163,358, up by 12,663.
Tea ceremony experts see matcha boom as a big opportunity
Atsuko Mori, founder and director of Kyoto-based tea salon Camellia Tea Ceremony, prepares matcha during a tea ceremony in Kyoto.
Japan's far-right party courts Trump allies and vows not to get 'wacky'
Sanseito party leader Sohei Kamiya speaks during an interview in Tokyo on Sept. 25.
How Ohtani has boosted Japan's soft power and made LA even more baseball-obsessed
Fans at Dodger Stadium pose in front of a mural highlighting the Dodgers' Japanese stars from past and present during a game earlier this year.
Japan faces fresh energy challenge as it seeks to expand power-hungry data centers
Data storage tapes at the National Energy Research Scientific Computing Center facility in Berkeley, California. Data centers consume massive amounts of electricity and water, and that will only rise as generative artificial intelligence takes off in earnest.
Architecture art exhibition highlights unsung industry artists
Yuanhui Li's illustration is one of the awardees in the student category of the American Society of Architectural Illustrators' annual award for artists.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

Growing families are being priced out of Tokyo’s condo market, forced to choose between downtown convenience and suburban space.
Is living in central Tokyo still affordable?
By Alex K.T. Martin

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

We are pleased to announce the winners of the 6th annual Sustainable Japan Award.
We are pleased to announce the winners of the 6th annual Sustainable Japan Award.

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